Cities Employment

The nation's cities employed a record 2,570,103 workers as of October, 1988, the Census Bureau said Tuesday. That is 28,735 more people than worked for cities a year earlier and about 9,000 more than the previous record, set in 1980.

The massive oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico is not likely to change pro-oil attitudes in southern Alabama — where gas rigs sprout in the middle of Mobile Bay, drilling platforms are visible from the beaches and the energy industry is a top employer. Residents are comfortable living side by side with refineries, pump-jacks and the acrid smell of sulfur, a byproduct of natural gas production. And in an effort to capitalize on the opening of the eastern gulf to new deepwater exploration — a federal initiative put on hold in the wake of the BP disaster — local businesses had even launched an "Offshore Alabama" campaign.

Nationally, fewer than 10% of criminal defendants are financially able to hire their own attorneys. A handful act as their own lawyers. The rest are represented by publicly paid lawyers--either government public defenders or private attorneys appointed by the court. Los Angeles County Public Defender Wilbur F. Littlefield said his office regularly represents 70% to 75% of all criminal defendants. In the last fiscal year, his 521 deputies handled 338,476 cases.

LaTatia Taylor spent 11 years on the welfare rolls, working "little jobs" but never earning enough to make it on her own. In this economy, the mother of two living in South-Central Los Angeles might have good reason to worry: Many former aid recipients have found themselves on the low-wage fringes of the job market, facing layoffs and slashed hours. Instead, Taylor is up to her calves in cement most days, fixing sidewalks for the Los Angeles Department of Public Works' Bureau of Street Services.

General-relief recipients who must work for their benefits will in a few months join San Fernando city workers picking up trash and removing graffiti. The city of San Fernando became the latest in a group of public and nonprofit entities to agree to use workers provided under the county's Workfare Program, which requires about 50,000 single adult women and men to work nine hours a month in exchange for monthly benefits of $293.

Nurses employed by the city of San Francisco approved a tentative agreement with the city by a slim 320-307 margin, union officials announced late Wednesday. The nurses, whose pay was frozen as part of the city's budget cutbacks, won an 8% pay raise for 1989. "The closeness of the vote means that management will have the next year to straighten out the (staffing) situation at San Francisco General Hospital.

Bell Gardens, which has one of the highest unemployment rates among Southeast-area cities, has started an employment bank to help residents find jobs in nearby businesses and offices. City officials say they hope that Work Force-Bell Gardens will help to solve one of the city's most persistent problems by bringing together people who need work with those offering jobs.

LaTatia Taylor spent 11 years on the welfare rolls, working "little jobs" but never earning enough to make it on her own. In this economy, the mother of two living in South-Central Los Angeles might have good reason to worry: Many former aid recipients have found themselves on the low-wage fringes of the job market, facing layoffs and slashed hours. Instead, Taylor is up to her calves in cement most days, fixing sidewalks for the Los Angeles Department of Public Works' Bureau of Street Services.

Allison Meadow, an 18-year-old student at Taft High School in Woodland Hills, keeps getting offers for summer jobs, even though she has a good one at a clothing store in the Topanga Plaza shopping center. "Everywhere I go, people try to recruit me," said the ebullient senior, who is saving for college. "People come in my store, (and) when I go into other clothing stores, people ask me if I want to work for them."

The massive oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico is not likely to change pro-oil attitudes in southern Alabama — where gas rigs sprout in the middle of Mobile Bay, drilling platforms are visible from the beaches and the energy industry is a top employer. Residents are comfortable living side by side with refineries, pump-jacks and the acrid smell of sulfur, a byproduct of natural gas production. And in an effort to capitalize on the opening of the eastern gulf to new deepwater exploration — a federal initiative put on hold in the wake of the BP disaster — local businesses had even launched an "Offshore Alabama" campaign.

Oil giant Chevron Corp. said Wednesday that it will end its 122-year history as a San Francisco company by moving its headquarters to a suburban campus in San Ramon, 40 miles east of its current home. The move, expected to be completed by the end of next year, represents a bigger blow to San Francisco's pride than its economic vitality. Formerly one of the city's largest employers, Chevron has just 200 workers at its San Francisco headquarters.

Cal State Fullerton contributes more than college graduates to Orange County, according to a new report the university released Tuesday: it also pumps about $489 million into the county's economy every year. Cal State Fullerton's Institute for Economic and Environmental Studies reported that salaries, benefits and other spending by the university have a $320.9-million economic impact on the county.

General-relief recipients who must work for their benefits will in a few months join San Fernando city workers picking up trash and removing graffiti. The city of San Fernando became the latest in a group of public and nonprofit entities to agree to use workers provided under the county's Workfare Program, which requires about 50,000 single adult women and men to work nine hours a month in exchange for monthly benefits of $293.

Bell Gardens, which has one of the highest unemployment rates among Southeast-area cities, has started an employment bank to help residents find jobs in nearby businesses and offices. City officials say they hope that Work Force-Bell Gardens will help to solve one of the city's most persistent problems by bringing together people who need work with those offering jobs.

Allison Meadow, an 18-year-old student at Taft High School in Woodland Hills, keeps getting offers for summer jobs, even though she has a good one at a clothing store in the Topanga Plaza shopping center. "Everywhere I go, people try to recruit me," said the ebullient senior, who is saving for college. "People come in my store, (and) when I go into other clothing stores, people ask me if I want to work for them."

Three years ago, Willetta Collins knew she needed a better job if she and her husband were going to be able to afford the Carson home they had just purchased. The couple, who also had a young child to support, both had jobs that paid only slightly more than minimum wage. To meet their monthly mortgage and other routine expenses, they simply had to increase their combined income.

Three years ago, Willetta Collins knew she needed a better job if she and her husband were going to be able to afford the Carson home they had just purchased. The couple, who also had a young child to support, both had jobs that paid only slightly more than minimum wage. To meet their monthly mortgage and other routine expenses, they simply had to increase their combined income.

Cal State Fullerton contributes more than college graduates to Orange County, according to a new report the university released Tuesday: it also pumps about $489 million into the county's economy every year. Cal State Fullerton's Institute for Economic and Environmental Studies reported that salaries, benefits and other spending by the university have a $320.9-million economic impact on the county.

The nation's cities employed a record 2,570,103 workers as of October, 1988, the Census Bureau said Tuesday. That is 28,735 more people than worked for cities a year earlier and about 9,000 more than the previous record, set in 1980.

Nurses employed by the city of San Francisco approved a tentative agreement with the city by a slim 320-307 margin, union officials announced late Wednesday. The nurses, whose pay was frozen as part of the city's budget cutbacks, won an 8% pay raise for 1989. "The closeness of the vote means that management will have the next year to straighten out the (staffing) situation at San Francisco General Hospital.